Since the beginning of Donald Trump’s presidency, there has been a marked increase in the number of calls in the US media for both greater nuclear cooperation with Japan and approval for the emergence of a “nuclear Japan”.

While tensions in the South China Sea have the potential for limited skirmishes far out to sea, the competition over the resources of the Mekong River is putting millions at risk of natural disasters, famine and regional instability.

Observers are hoping that Kenya’s 2017 election will not be an encore presentation of 2007; however, there are worrying signs that many of the risks which played a role in the 2007 crisis have not been addressed.

Festering tensions between Egypt and Sudan are spreading instability as territorial disputes spillover into economic and political matters. The type of rhetoric involved as well as the authoritarian nature of the regimes involved heightens the risk for brinkmanship and increases the possibility of a border clash going forward.

Sri Lanka is being courted (and courting in turn) by various major powers, each seeking a stake in developing Sri Lanka’s strategic location midway between the Middle East and the Straits of Malacca. While opportunities present themselves, all this attention also comes with its own set of complications.

Since 2008, East Timor has also been named the most democratic nation in South East Asia by the Economist. Such credentials would appear to indicate clear sailing, yet there are growing political risks that need to be addressed if long-term stability is to be realized.